China Airlines is taking part in a biofuels programme – being pioneered by Airbus – to reduce its carbon emissions.
The initiative China Airlines of Taiwan has signed up to will see it welcome an A350-900 model from Airbus – that has a 10% ‘blend of sustainable jet fuel in its tanks’ – to its base in Taipei. It is the tenth that China Airlines has added to its fleet: delivered from the Airbus manufacturing centre in Toulouse.
Airbus is providing the ‘eco-friendly product’ through its collaboration with Air Total, which has a biofuel station located at the Toulouse hub.
“China Airlines is proud to have taken delivery of its first aircraft to be partially powered by sustainable biofuel,” said Nuan-Hsuan, China Airlines Chairman. “This reflects our clear commitment to reduce the impact of aviation on the environment and to be among those airlines leading the way to use alternative fuel sources. With the A350 XWB in our fleet we are already significantly reducing our carbon footprint and we are excited that this can be extended even further with the use of new biofuels.”
Frederic Eychenne, Head of New Energies at Airbus, said that “today’s delivery demonstrates once again that biofuels are a reality today.”
He added: “We are moving towards the regular use of new and sustainable energy sources in our industry, helping to meet the commitments of the international civil aviation community.”
It is the latest move by the aviation industry to incorporate biofuels into their power mix. Qantas, Cathay Pacific, KLM and Air Canada are some of the others investing in cleaner fuel.
